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In a dramatic political upheaval, Portugal is hurtling toward its third general election in barely three years after Prime Minister Luís Montenegro's right-of-centre minority government collapsed on Tuesday. Lawmakers decisively rejected Montenegro's confidence motion by 142 to 88, with zero abstentions.
"We tried everything to avoid a snap election," Montenegro told reporters after the devastating vote that ended his administration after just 11 months in office. The government now assumes a caretaker role until fresh elections, likely to be held in mid-May.
The confidence motion was surprisingly initiated by Montenegro's own government following opposition Socialists' plans to launch a parliamentary inquiry into his business dealings. At the heart of the controversy is Spinumviva, a consultancy firm founded by Montenegro that continued receiving substantial payments after his political ascension.
"The insinuation that I mixed my business and political activity is completely abusive, and even insulting," Montenegro declared before parliament prior to the vote. Despite his defense, questions persist about Spinumviva's €4,500 monthly payments from a hotels and casino group whose gambling concession is currently under review.
Montenegro claims he offered to face a parliamentary committee inquiry for up to two months to avoid elections, but Socialist leader Pedro Nuno Santos labeled these last-minute negotiations "desperate and shameful," declaring Montenegro "unfit to govern."
President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will consult with major political parties Wednesday and his advisory Council of State Thursday before formally dissolving parliament. He previously indicated new elections would follow if the government lost its confidence vote.
Public frustration is mounting over Portugal's political instability. "This seems like a joke, no one understands why there's a new election so soon. Politicians blame each other, but all of them are being irresponsible," said João Brito, a 70-year-old retired civil servant in Lisbon.
"The problem is that the new election will not be conclusive," warns Adelino Maltez of Lisbon University, noting that Montenegro's Democratic Alliance and the Socialists remain neck-and-neck in polls, mirroring last year's razor-thin electoral margins.
The political crisis creates potential opportunity for the far-right Chega party, parliament's third-largest force, though its momentum has been hampered by recent scandals involving MPs accused of various crimes.
Montenegro's government had desperately tried to demonstrate effectiveness in its final days, approving numerous spending measures. However, with polls showing little change in voter preferences since the 2024 election, Portugal appears trapped in a cycle of political uncertainty that another ballot seems unlikely to resolve.
